


Seeking of Approval - Loki

by xvibi



Category: Marvel, Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Loki (Marvel) Does What He Wants, Loki (Marvel) Feels, Loki (Marvel) Has Issues, Loki (Marvel) Needs a Hug, No Romance, Odin's Bad Parenting (Marvel), Protective Frigga (Marvel)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-23
Updated: 2020-09-23
Packaged: 2021-03-08 03:28:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26609035
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/xvibi/pseuds/xvibi
Summary: A short one-shot about Loki's childhood that will probably want to make you give him a hug.
Kudos: 20





	Seeking of Approval - Loki

When Loki was a child, he was usually seen as nothing more than Thor’s annoying and odd younger brother. Most people paid him no attention, and when they did, it was usually only to mock him. He was never quite on the same page as the rest of the royal family, and nobody ever let him forget it for even a moment. He always looked up to Thor though, he admired how easily Thor made friends, and how people tended to gravitate toward him. Fulfilling the younger-brother stereotype, he often tried to include himself in Thor’s adventures and tried to become friends with the older god’s companions but often failed. He decided to try to make his own friends but that too failed. The other children, despite knowing he was the son of Odin, often shied away from him, and had it not been for his royalty, they would’ve mocked him.

After a while, he gave up on trying to make friends with the other Asgardian children. He became very withdrawn, and started acting out some. He began his mischievous antics, and when he wasn’t up to that, he locked himself away in the palace library where he would read day and night, mostly about astrology and the nine realms. When Frigga noticed the sudden change in the young boy, she decided to teach him her magic in hopes of inspiring him. When she was done with her duties for the day, she would go to the library and every day, she would teach Loki something new, and soon enough, the magic became a second nature to him. It was also during this time that he created a nightly routine for himself. When the darkness fell over the night sky, and everyone had settled in the palace had drifted off to sleep, he would sneak away and go to the bifrost to visit Heimdall. He would tell Heimdall about all the things he had read about during the day, and Heimdall in return for the much enjoyed company, would show him where all the celestial bodies he had read about that day were located in the night sky, and sometimes even teach and show him others that Loki had not yet read about. The young boy also liked to practice his magic, and he would show Heimdall all of the tricks Frigga had taught him during the day. Heimdall, who was often overlooked by the passerbyers, very much enjoyed the Loki’s nightly visits, and was honored that the rather timid prince had trusted him enough to confide in him.

After some time, Loki began to become less isolated. He would often spend his days exploring Asgard, and soon enough, he began to find hidden entrances, tunnels, and passages that would aid him later in life. But when he wasn’t roaming about, he was at the palace, usually training or practicing his magic. When Loki had grown rather confident in his abilities, he began to gravitate toward Odin. He would tag along to important meetings, or often just sit at his side, wondering what it would feel like to have the throne, and rule over Asgard as his father did. Odin usually did not pay much attention, and when the subject of who his successor would be came up, it was always Thor that Odin wanted to be king, never Loki. Everytime it happened, it often made Loki feel the way he had when he was a child, always jealous of Thor, and yearning to be recognized the way Thor was, and he felt that he would never be able to please Odin and live up to his expectations. Frigga, being no stranger to Odin’s cruel treatment of Loki, often tried to make up for her husband's actions. On days in which she noticed that Odin had been harder on Loki than usual, and Loki lowered his shield and not pay so much attention to how confident and prideful he carried himself with, she tried to comfort him by spending time with him, sometimes showing him more powerful kinds of magic that she had refrained from teaching him when he was still a young child.

Loki always appreciated his mother's kindness, but it wasn’t enough for him to stop seeking the approval of his father. He began to use the more powerful magic that Frigga would teach him, in hopes of showing his father just how powerful he had become, but his plans often backfired on him and would get him in trouble, which Odin did not appreciate in the slightest. Odin knew that Frigga was one of the most powerful witches in the nine realms, and he had no doubt that with Frigga as a mother and teacher, that Loki too would go on to have great powers as well, although he would never tell Loki of such a thing, in fear that it would only encourage Loki’s mischievous tendencies, but each time Odin held his tongue, he did exactly what he was trying to avoid.

While Loki was attempting to gain Odin’s approval, Thor would often be off on some journey with Lady Sif and the Warriors Three. It more often than not, ended with Thor picking a fight with the people of some other planet and waging a war with them. Despite Thor’s recklessness, Odin often praised him for his might and strength, which would only make Loki more angry.

When Loki had enchanted Odin and abandoned him on Midgard, Loki began to realise that being king was not everything he had imagined it would be. He didn’t necessarily mind it, but he did not crave the power and praise that he once had. After some time, he began to realize that it was never truly the throne he craved, just the simple approval and appreciation from his father (but he would never admit it). When Thor had returned to Asgard and forced him to expose his true self to the people of Asgard, a part of him felt relieved. That same day, when they had traveled to Midgard to find their father, and Odin had praised how well Loki had spelled him and told him that Frigga would have been proud of him, Loki, for the first time in his life, had finally felt recognized and appreciated by his father. It was a small gesture, but it was all Loki had ever needed to hear, and it was enough to make him think of himself as Thor’s equal rather than just a younger brother living in the shadows of a mighty man born to be a king.


End file.
